Colts 24, Texans 21: The good, bad and ugly

Eric Ebron and the Colts' offense took control of the game with four consecutive scoring drives during the second and third quarters Sunday against the Texans.

Photo: Godofredo A. Vasquez/Staff photographer

Finishing a three-game homestand, the Texans had a chance to push their franchise-record win streak to 10 games. Instead, their secondary got picked apart by old foe Andrew Luck and Indianapolis held on for the victory.

Here’s a look at the good bad and ugly from Colts 24, Texans 21:

The good

1. T.Y. Hilton. We’ve learned to save a space for him here through the years. It was another day for him at his second home, also known as NRG Stadium. He finished with nine catches for 199 yards, with a 60-yard catch that changed the complexion of the game. He’s averaged 133 yards per game in seven visits to NRG.

2. Ryan Griffin. He had a team-high 80 receiving yards on five catches, including a 47-yard catch and run that set up the Texans’ final touchdown. The 80 yards marked a season high for the tight end.

3. Still in control of South. The loss may have snapped the Texans’ winning streak at nine games, but they remain in control of the AFC South with a two-game lead with three games to play. It would take quite the collapse against a favorable schedule for them to not win their fifth division crown since 2011.

1. Late penalties. The Colts got three first downs on their final drive that iced the game. Two came courtesy of Texans penalties, with Jadeveon Clowney’s neutral-zone infraction on third and 1 with two minutes left the final dagger. There’s no guarantee the Texans would’ve stopped the Colts, but Clowney’s overaggression ensured we’d never find out.

2. Texans’ secondary. For the second time this season, Andrew Luck shredded them, this time for 399 yards and two touchdowns for a 103.6 rating. Aaron Colvin, whom the Texans spent big money on in free agency, barely saw the field while waiver-wire pickup Shareece Wright was picked on repeatedly.

3. Bill O’Brien’s decisions. A few to chew on here, like the unsuccessful challenge on Ryan Griffin’s catch and lunge on which the tight end clearly appeared short of the goal line. Think the Texans could’ve used the timeout they lost at the end? Also, punting at the Indianapolis 38 early in the fourth quarter instead of trying a long field goal was another decision that’ll be second-guessed, as well as a curious timeout call after the first play of the Colts’ final drive in the first half that only benefited Indianapolis.

4. Texans’ running game. Not counting rushes by Deshaun Watson, the ground game was abysmal. Lamar Miller and Alfred Blue combined for 54 yards on 20 carries. During the first half, Miller had six carries for minus-5 yards.

The ugly

1. Big missed opportunity. This loss hurt in more ways than one. New England lost at Miami on a stunning multi-lateral touchdown in the final seconds, so the Texans could’ve vaulted the Patriots for the AFC’s No. 2 seed (and the first-round bye that comes with it). Instead, they laid an egg against a middling Colts team.

Greg Rajan is the senior editor for Texas Sports Nation, the Houston Chronicle's premium sports website. He joined the Chronicle in January 2015 as the online sports editor. He previously worked as the sports editor at the Corpus Christi Caller-Times. He led that sports section to three Associated Press Sports Editors top-10 national awards. He also has worked at the Austin American-Statesman and Temple Daily Telegram.

He is a graduate of Southwest Texas State University and Bowie High School in Austin.